South Africa may impose ban on liquor sale amid rising COVID-19 cases

With surpassing one million COVID-19 cases South Africa might reinstate a ban on the sales of liquor in an effort to deal with the fallout, according to a report by Bloomberg.

The country reportedly noticed three 'record-breaking days' of COVID-19 cases, as said by Zweli Mkhize, the Health Minister of the country. The country has reported the second COVID-19 wave prior to the time the government has anticipated, as per the report. He said, "the whole country really is under siege with the resurgence. The numbers are increasing much more rapidly that we initially thought".

However, a ban on sales of alcohol has been enforced to various extents since one of the world's most rigorous lockdowns was imposed in 2020, March which also resulted in revenue losses carried to lessen hospital admissions from alcohol-related and violent vehicle accidents, as per the report.

The ban could begin on Tuesday which might last through 10 January 2021, as noted by an anonymous source in the report.

When asked about the ban Tyrone Seale, the media spokesman for Cyril Ramaphosa, the President of South Africa said, "government continuously monitors all dimensions of the Covid-19 pandemic and as and when decisions are taken they are communicated publicly".